Gun.Smoke (1/677)

Overview: 

Gun.Smoke for the NES was released in North America in 1988. The game is an overhead shooter set in the Old West in 1849. A group of outlaws called the Windgates have taken over the town, and your goal is to save the town of Hicksville from these bandits. To complete this game, you will make your way through six unique levels.

Controls:

The controls for this game are straightforward. The d-pad moves your character in all directions. The A button shoots to the right, and the B button shoots to the left. Holding both buttons simultaneously shoots forward. The Start button pauses the game. The Select button opens the special weapons select screen. 

Weapons/Items:

There are several weapons and special items that can be purchased from street merchants throughout each level. These items can be very helpful. One merchant sells a variety of weapons.

• Shot Gun- fires a four bullet spread pattern
• Machine Gun- continues to fire when holding either the a or b buttons
• Mag Num- most powerful weapon to use on bosses
• Smart Bomb- kills all enemies on the screen (except stage bosses) and provides an additional hit 

The second merchant sells supplies.

• Ammo- provides extra ammo for special weapons
• Horse- allows you to take a few additional hits without dying
• Wanted posters- these are needed to fight the final boss.

What I like:

1. Gameplay:

The controls in this game are extremely smooth. At no point during the game will you feel like you are at a disadvantage because of the controls. The responsiveness can even be a benefit in tough situations allowing you to quickly maneuver out of harms way.  

2. Variety of Bosses:

The levels in this game can become slightly repetitive, but you won't notice this while playing the game. The levels aren't extremely long, and you will face a different boss at the end of each stage. This breaks up the monotony and provides a difficult but fair challenge. 

3. Large Volumes of Ammo:

The shotgun becomes very important later in the game. It provides a great spread pattern while giving you time to dodge enemies and bullets. You can collect large volumes of ammo for your special weapons by killing enemies and shooting barrels.  

What I didn’t like:

1. Can't Shoot Behind You:

When you reach the third level, enemies will start attacking from the bottom of the screen. Since you are unable to shoot in this direction it can put you in some difficult situations; however, I’ve found a pretty effective technique to help in this situation. This technique will be discussed in more detail in a later section.

2. Collecting the Wanted Poster:

In each level, there is a wanted poster that you need to collect before you can fight the stage boss. If you miss the wanted poster you will repeat the level until it’s collected. You can purchase the wanted poster from a merchant but I’d advise against this since the poster appears in the same location every time you play a stage. Save your money for the shotgun, horses, and smart bombs.

3. Screen Obstructions:

Obstructions combined with enemies attacking from the bottom of the screen can make the later levels difficult. During the last two stages cliffs, trees, buildings, and gravestones will take up large portions of the screen. There isn’t a good way to avoid these. You will need to pay attention and react quickly to oncoming enemies. 

Fun facts:

The . was added to the name to differentiate itself from the television show. The game shared the name and theme but has no relationship to the show. 

There were two covers released for this game. The original artwork showed a building prominently labeled BAR in the background. The second version drastically reduces the size of the building and labels it as a saloon. 

Tips:

1. Save Special Ammo:

Since the final level is difficult, I recommend saving a good amount of shotgun ammo for this stage. I had a difficult time making it through this level on a horse. Using the shotgun on the final stage can help get you through the game. 

2. Turbo Controller:

A turbo controller makes a huge difference in this game. I don’t consider this cheating since the NES Max is an officially released Nintendo controller. The only weapon that continues to fire while holding the fire buttons is the machine gun. Using a turbo controller like the NES Max, will let all guns fire constantly.

3. Smart Bombs

Smart bombs can be purchased throughout each level. These can be very useful when you find yourself in a difficult situation. When you make a mistake and take a hit the smart bomb gives you an additional hit and kills all standard enemies on the screen. I generally only purchase these when I have a horse. If you don’t have a horse, save your money.

4. Horses

The horse allows you to take several additional hits. Other than the shotgun this is the most useful item.

5. Circle Technique 

The circle technique is something I came up with while making my way through the game. This technique becomes very important when enemies start attacking from the bottom of the screen but can be used at any point. When enemies are attacking from the bottom of the screen you want to move to the top of the screen. The enemies will follow you towards the top. Once you have the enemies towards the top of the screen you can circle behind them. 

Conclusion:

If you are looking for a fast-paced game that provides a fair amount of difficulty I'd recommend giving this game a try. You probably won't beat the game on your first try, but the game offers unlimited continues, so you can keep trying until you do. I'd definitely recommend giving this game a shot.